A strong skepticism of the prevailing mixed economy defines what is a left libertarian.
Their beliefs on ownership are particularly nuanced. Natural resources such as land, oil, and trees can be subject to collective ownership. While left libertarians respect private property more than most of the prominent forces on the left, they do not fully eschew collective forms of property ownership.
Voluntary co-operatives, communes, and other worker-driven arrangements can be used to empower workers and allow them to enjoy material benefits without having to face capitalist exploitation.
Going back to natural resources, individuals in a leftist libertarian order can still use the aforementioned commonly-owned goods. But there’s a catch: The use of such resources can only occur after society grants these individuals permission. In order to gain permission, individuals must make a payment to society at large.
The Intellectual Basis for Left Libertarian Economic Thought
Such logic is inspired by the thought of 19th century economist Henry George, who pushed for a land tax. George’s views on property rights were somewhat unique by United States standards, which tended to be more rooted in classical liberalism or free-market conservatism. In contrast, George saw land as a commonly-held resource and could not be held exclusively by an individual.
This conception of land ownership stood in contrast to the views of John Locke, who believed that land could be privately owned and homesteaded by individuals. Lockean views of private property tend to be more prevalent among Republicans, right-wing libertarians, and other classical liberal adjacent movements.
The Overlap and Differences Between Leftist Libertarians and Anti-Property Movements
Left-wing libertarians have a lot in common with collectivist and Marxist views on private property, at least in a conceptual sense. Although the similarities have limits. Advocates of collectivism on the authoritarian left are more likely to use state power to achieve their ends at the expense of individual freedom.
At the end of the day, left libertarians come in all shapes. They don’t generally dismiss the insights of Marxism and incorporate some of the anti-property beliefs of the renowned left anarchist thinker Pierre-Joseph Proudhon.
Proudhon is widely viewed as the father of the political philosophy of anarchism and is famous for his quip “property is theft.”
Like libertarian socialists, the libertarians of the left go beyond concepts of self-ownership and stress the need for voluntary institutions that close inequality gaps. Left-wing libertarians sympathize with economic redistribution of resources, albeit in a voluntary manner to correct disparities in inequality.
American philosopher Gary Chartier is a prominent anarchist who blends certain facets of libertarian thought with an anarchist agenda to create a stateless society. Chartier’s brand of anarchism doesn’t take a statist approach to addressing the question of allocating resources, but his vision for a stateless society remains rather unique.
And you want to waste space on this because...?
Social justice and equality are opposites. If a person struggles with that basic reality, then they have other problems that make logic and empirical evidence irrelevant.
Libertarianism is intrinsically Leftist, since it denies human nature and the historical record of all human civilizations since the beginning of time.
Just look at their party platform, it is far left.
“equality and social justice under the framework of a free-market economy”
Mutually exclusive. It takes force.
How can one square letting people live their lives as they wish with commandeering their time for your personal benefit and being willing to kill them if they do not submit and all their time and resources for your personal benefit while you are not obligated to reciprocate in any way shape or form?
“Can libertarians be of the Left?”
It depends. Will the drag queens read Marx or Hayek to the children while grooming them? Of course, the children have consented.
No. The very suggestion of it is goofy.
Libertarianism does NOT tend to be a fervently pro-free market ideology.
Libertarianism is fervently pro-Individual.
In my experience most libertarians tend to vote conservative if their is no libertarian candidate. But by all means insult them if you feel the need. Push them into the other camp. Good job.
are they the bunch living in Colorado where marijuana is legal, or in California with all the other fruits and nuts?
Every Libertarian I ever knew was primarily focused on using marijuana or other “fun” drugs without consequences.
Libertarians are Libertarian.....until they’re not.